Mansfield tunes up for postseason with a 28-0 victory over Foxboro

For the Mansfield High football team, the Thanksgiving Day game plan was to score early and often, and then rest for Tuesday’s playoff game against Bishop Feehan.

Despite a minor snag on the opening the kickoff, the 10-1 Hornets did that to perfection with a 28-0 victory over Foxboro in the 78th annual meeting at Alumni Field.

The win gave the Hornets the Hockomock League title outright as they went undefeated.

For Mansfield, this is the sixth straight year it has either won or shared the Hockomock League title.

“It gets better every year, though,” said Mansfield senior quarterback-defensive back Jeff Mallett, who has played on three championship teams. “Senior year, you’re more involved.”

Mansfield will play Bishop Feehan in the Div. 2 playoffs at a site and time to be announced. Last year, Feehan defeated the Hornets.

“This is what we wanted,” said Mansfield coach Mike Redding. “Now we have to take advantage.”

Junior running back Shawn Doherty scored two touchdowns and was awarded the Don Currivan Trophy as Mansfield’s most valuable player. He finished with 101 yards on eight carries.

Foxboro running back-linebacker Luke Soccorso was the Warriors’ MVP.

“(Doherty) makes people miss and he has great vision,” said Redding. “He’s a lot stronger and tougher than he looks. He’s not tall, but he’s put together and works hard in the weight room.”

Playing with nothing to lose, Foxboro opened the game with an onside kick that was recovered by J.P. Slaby, but Mansfield was able to hold the Warriors on fourth down at the Hornets’ 20-yard line.

With 2:18 left in the first quarter, Doherty broke tackles and weaved his way through the Foxboro defense for a 59-yard touchdown run. Don Washburn kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead.

“We never want to get down, 7-0, in a big game to an underdog team,” said Redding. “Now that gives them life and it just rallies them.

“(The defensive stand) was a huge thing to stop them and get the first points on the board.”

Foxboro suffered a big blow on the first play of the second quarter as senior Brian Swanton suffered a leg injury while being sacked and didn’t return for the rest of the game.

“You hate to see that happen,” said Redding. “He has had a great two- year career and I just hope he’s all right. You never want to see that happen to someone in their senior year.”

Without Swanton, the Warriors borrowed the playbook of the Miami Dolphins, going to the “Wildcat” offense with junior running back Mike Delaney taking the shotgun snaps from center.

“I shouldn’t have been surprised by that,” said Redding with a laugh. “I should have known. Everyone else is doing it.”

Mansfield’s defense, though, was able to bottle up the Foxboro offense, while putting two touchdowns on the board before the first half ended.

“We’re pretty confident that when push comes to shove we’re going to keep people out of the end zone,” said Redding.

Doherty closed out a 62-yard drive with a 20-yard touchdown run around right end, diving at the last second to get the ball across the goal line.

Foxboro’s next offensive series ended when senior Dan Glavin recovered a fumble at the Foxboro 35-yard line.

With 34 seconds left in the half, Mallett found tight-end Andrew Kelley open with a 27-yard touchdown pass. Andrew Doherty added the extra point for a 21-0 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, Mansfield’s Rodney Chance picked off a pass to set up the final points.

After Shawn Doherty broke free for a 36-yard gain to the Foxboro four-yard line, Mansfield scored two plays later. On a rushing attempt, the ball popped out and went into the end zone where sophomore Justin Pennellatore caught it for the score.

“If anyone had told me back in January that we’d be 10-1, I would have taken it and run,” said Redding. “I think we’ve overachieved a little bit.

“We don’t play a lot of guys both ways and we have a lot of fresh people and a lot of unselfish kids. They accept their roles. It’s just been kind of a unique mix of everything falling in place with the pieces of the puzzle coming together just right. It’s a good example of the sum of the parts being greater than the individual separately.”

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